MSU, MDES now providing new job-search engine

STARKVILLE, Miss.--As spring graduation approaches, officials at Mississippi State and the Mississippi Department of Employment Security are launching a new service that enables state employers to easily announce job openings to university students and alumni.

The online program is the culmination of combined efforts by MDES, MSU's Career Center and the campus-based National Strategic Planning and Analysis Research Center, known to most by its acronym nSPARC. The new site's address is www.MSgradjobs.com.

"Employers in the state now have another venue to list available professional positions they are seeking to fill and have those postings reach a larger pool of qualified applicants," said MSU President Mark E. Keenum, in making the announcement.

Scott Maynard, Career Center director, said the advertisement of positions is open "to all students and graduates who qualify and are registered with our office.

"It also will enable any alumnus seeking to return to Mississippi access to a database of jobs for which they qualify," Maynard added.

"Providing career assistance for our alumni always has been a top priority for our office," Andrews said. "We are excited for what this partnership will mean to graduates wanting to return to Mississippi, as well as for the impact MSU continues to have on the state."

Previously, MDES worked with nSPARC to develop the MDES Online Employment Service, which professor Domenico "Mimmo" Parisi called "the backbone of the new partnership with MSU."

Parisi, nSPARC's director, said creation of MSgradjobs.com "is a testament to the commitment that universities like MSU have to meeting the demands of a high-performance workforce in a growing, knowledge-based economy."

Parisi also praised the many "visionaries" who have helped the state become "a pioneer in developing the framework that will benefit both the state and provide a model for the rest of the country."

Speaking for potential employers, MDES Executive Director Mark Henry said the new service "provides a new avenue to recruit the talented students who are graduating from Mississippi State."

Henry said his state department "now looks forward to expanding MSgradjobs.com to include all of the universities and colleges in Mississippi."